Steely Dan Like No Other

Steely Dan, a band like no other. If you are a music fan you most likely have an opinion of them. You may not have known much about jazz, but they heavily brought it to the masses in the FM world of the seventies. You might have been immersed into the sounds of southern California singer-songwriters, or southern rock, or acid rock, or British invasion stuff. There in the midst of all of that emerged a sound that was urban and distant. To me, Steely Dan jumped out of all of this. Even though Reelin’ In The Years was close to what I was used to, Do It Againwas not. I bought a cassette of Can’t Buy A Thrill, and admittedly, beyond what was on the radio, it wasn’t what I was accustomed to hearing—it was different but captivating. There was such perfection in the recording and orchestration and such a clean sound.

Critics and those who don’t appreciate their music complain about the stolen jazz riffs and ironic commentary. I am one who appreciates their ability to focus on a vision and demand it from themselves—and umpteen studio musicians to deliver a product that is flawless and exacting. Included with this are two short vlogs about their music. Enjoy.

4 Comments on “Steely Dan Like No Other”

Well said. After all these years I still can’t resist listening to Steely Dan. When I am in the right mood there is little else that sounds as good. They made records that were consistent in writing and performance, and there were very few songs in my opinion that didn’t work or needed to be skipped over when listening. Aja was the most popular, but Can’t buy a Thrill, Pretzel Logic, and The Royal Scam where my favorites.

Yep, I could have kept writing, but I really like the videos and how they introduce and develop the mindset of Fagen and Becker. I love these analyzed versions of music like theirs and Pink Floyd. Two really amazing groups that put so much into being “recording artists.” I would put Tom Waits and Beck up there too.